Speaking at a conference of the Institute of Community Cohesion in London last week, communities secretary Eric Pickles said:

"Unless you have a good command of English it reduces people's life chances [and] social mobility. The trouble with multiculturalism was that it went too far in the wrong direction.

"We got the balance wrong. It got muddled up and it failed to stem the rise of a new bigotry… that says expecting people to speak a common language isn't part of being British."

But is he right?

The definition of multiculturalism varies and there has been much debate about what it means in practice. Whether referring to the integration of many communities in one geographical area, or a peaceful diversity of religious belief and cultural practices, most local authorities have their own idea of what 'multicultural' means to them.

So is Pickles right to say the focus on multiculturalism has hindered social progress and made things worse for some communities? Does multicultuarlism stifle social mobility? Cast your vote now and share your comments in the space below.